People wind up in the Jungle for all kinds of reasons. Some say shelters don’t work for them because they can’t bring their stuff, their partners or their pets with them.

In the Jungle they feel they have autonomy. Others stay there because it’s close to the methadone clinic where they receive treatment for opioid addiction. Still others say the Jungle is a kind of community where they feel safer than when they are living on the street.

Mayor Ed Murray has declared Seattle’s homeless crisis a state of emergency. But there are some known solutions.

One of those is “housing first” – getting people into housing before they get sober or before their mental health issues are in control. It’s a concept pioneered in Seattle, but that hasn’t yet been widely used.

In this act, we hear from people about some of the ways we can reduce homelessness in the Seattle area.

Six months ago, they were just strangers. And six months ago, I was homeless and couch surfing. I worked about 35 hours a week at Panda Express while attending school full time. I was a junior in high school, 16 years old.